AHY Said that the Monopoly on the Interpretation of Pancasila has the Potential to Abuse Power

Jakarta – Democratic Party DPP Chairperson Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono said the monopoly on the interpretation of the Pancasila in the Draft Pancasila Ideology Bill (the HIP Bill) could potentially be a tool of abuse of power.

“This bill has the potential to facilitate a monopoly on interpretations of Pancasila which in turn has the potential to become an easily abused power tool,” AHY said in an online seminar through Zoom Meeting, Friday.

The son of the Republic of Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) also disagreed that the Pancasila Ideology Policy is regulated in the Law, because Pancasila should be a reference for the formation of the Law.

AHY considered that Pancasila regulated in a Draft Law would actually reduce the degree of Pancasila as the basis of the state which regulates all the implementation of the Indonesian constitutional system.

The HIP bill downgraded the Pancasila was also said by the Secretary General of the Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals Association (ICMI) Mohammad Jafar Hafsah while speaking at the online discussion held by the Democratic Party.

“Actually, this bill was made to downgrade, to reduce, to make porous Pancasila. Actually it was not discussed differently,” said Jafar.

He also said that the five precepts in Pancasila were mentioned in the opening of the 1945 Constitution as the basis of the purpose of the nation and state.

“So if you want to make other rules, it is no longer talking about Pancasila but it talks about how the components of the application of Pancasila are contained in various laws such as the Mineral and Coal Mining Law, and so on,” said Jafar.

Online discussion organized by the Democratic Party entitled Religion and Pancasila in Caring for Indonesia: Completely Surgical Draft of the Pancasila Ideology Bill (RUU HIP) which took place through the Zoom Meeting application, Friday from 15:30 WIB until before Maghrib at 17:30 WIB

Democrats also invited a number of interfaith leaders such as Catholic religious leader Natalis Situmorang.

In the discussion, Natalis suggested not to discuss anything that had been completed before with the HIP Bill. According to Natalis, it should be consistent with Pancasila.

“The most important thing is we have to find a way to practice it in a way that has to be adjusted to the times,” he said.

While in the discussion, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) researcher Siti Zuhro said Pancasila only needed to be understood, lived up to, and implemented through thought and action.

“Pancasila only needs to be understood, lived up to, and implemented through thought and action. Many say NKRI has a fixed price, the same as Pancasila. Pancasila also has a fixed price,” he said. (Ant)

*English by Tokoh.ID system.